


I'll Keep You Safe.

by ninisalazarroberts



Category: High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Car Accidents, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, I apologize in advance, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, This is gonna be really angsty
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-15
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:06:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27025528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ninisalazarroberts/pseuds/ninisalazarroberts
Summary: Everyone is born with their soulmate's last words tattooed on their wrist, meaning you never know who they are until you lose them. Ricky Bowen and Nini Salazar-Roberts have been best friends as long as the two can remember, but have never once spoken about the words on their wrist. Ricky has no idea who his soulmate could be, although, truthfully, he hopes it's Nini, but he can't stop thinking about their last words: "Please don't leave me."
Relationships: Ricky Bowen/Nini Salazar-Roberts
Comments: 3
Kudos: 34





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Figured I'd try writing a soulmate au! This prompt is from tumblr user aceofultron: _soulmate au where instead of your soulmate's first words it's their last words_
> 
> also, I am aware there is a very similar au on here, and I am not at all trying to copy that author's work!

The first time Ricky Bowen noticed the words written on his wrist, he was four years old. He asked his mom what they meant, and she explained to him in the simplest way possible that they were the last words his soulmate would ever say.

But what was a soulmate? 

His mom explained that it was someone who was made for you. And he didn’t understand what that meant, until he was six years old and he met Nini Salazar- Roberts. 

They instantly clicked, and Ricky immediately knew he wanted her to be his best friend forever. 

They did everything together, their parents joking about how they were ‘attached at the hip.’ Ricky later learned that he was Nini’s first best friend, and at only seven years old, he was determined to be the most awesome, most best friend she would ever have. 

When they were ten, he asked her what words were written on her wrist, and she got so upset she didn’t speak to him for three days. He didn’t understand why it had made her so upset - wasn’t it a good thing? Didn’t she want to find her soulmate? But then his dad explained that those words meant you would lose your soulmate, and he finally seemed to understand. So he covered up his words, and the two never spoke of it again. 

When they were thirteen years old, she had run up to him in his backyard, kissing him right on the lips, saying that she thought maybe they could be something more than friends. 

It wasn’t until they were fifteen that Ricky actually asked her out, and during one of their late night phone calls, had whispered something about soulmates. 

Nini barely spoke to him for two days after that. 

It wasn’t that she was _afraid_ of finding her soulmate, per say, but the idea of not knowing who they were until it was too late was enough to have her shut down every time it was brought up. She never wanted to know his words, and to have him know hers, a part of her afraid he’d get mad enough to say them out loud. But there was also another part of her that was afraid he wasn’t even her soulmate. And if he wasn’t, she never wanted to find that out. 

Now it was the first day of junior year, and they had been together for almost two years, best friends for almost eleven. As she did every morning, she looked down at the words printed neatly on her wrist - _I love you forever and always_ , staring at the neatly printed writing for a minute before covering it up with a bracelet like she does every morning, heading downstairs to meet Ricky outside.


	2. Chapter 2

“Excited for the first day?” He asked, glancing over at her, his eyes gravitating to the bracelet on her wrist like they did every morning.

“I mean, yeah, I guess.” She replied softly, grabbing onto his free hand. “Glad to be back to a routine, but everyone says junior year is super stressful.”

“Yeah, but you’ll kill it.” He replied, his eyes on the road. “Just like you do every year.”

She smiled, turning her attention back to the view outside her window for a minute. 

“You know, Ashlyn said she found her soulmate this summer.”

Nini froze, her hand going limp in his, and he looked over at her, watching as her eyes glazed over, like every other time he brought up soulmates.

“Ni?”

“I told you I don’t like to talk about that.” She let out quietly, her eyes glued to the window.

“But don’t you want to know who it is?” 

She turned her head to look at him, staying quiet for a minute, almost like she was choosing her next words carefully. “No, I don’t. I would much rather go through life being with who I want to be with, and not have to lose them.”

He sighed, gently squeezing her hand. “But don’t you at least want to know what their words are? So you know what _not_ to say?”

She shook her head. “I don’t want to know anything about it.” She pulled her hand away from his, absentmindedly starting to spin her bracelet around her wrist - which he immediately recognized as one of her nervous habits.

“Hey, I’m sorry.” He said softly. “I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

“It’s okay.” She replied quietly. 

“I love you forever and a day.” He said, glancing over at her.

“I love you too.” She let out, her breath caught in her throat.

_I love you forever and a day._

At least it hadn’t been forever and always.


End file.
